Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Phuket and Caraguatatuba

For one person, living is cheaper in Caraguatatuba: $778 a month against $1,278 in Phuket, rent and utilities included – about $6,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

62

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
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Phuket Living Index
37

Cost of Living Index in Caraguatatuba
Learn more

Caraguatatuba Living Index

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Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,278

/mo nomad

Caraguatatuba

🇧🇷 Brazil

$778

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Phuket and in Caraguatatuba

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Phuket and in Caraguatatuba actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,278 in Phuket versus $778 in Caraguatatuba.

Phuket $1,278
Caraguatatuba $778

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,216 in Phuket versus $1,259 in Caraguatatuba.

Phuket $2,216
Caraguatatuba $1,259

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,154 in Phuket versus $1,739 in Caraguatatuba.

Phuket $3,154
Caraguatatuba $1,739

Living in Phuket is roughly 64% more expensive than in Caraguatatuba, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Phuket 6% lower, Caraguatatuba 43% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.47 ฿151

$6.94 R$37.36

-35.59%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$32.41 ฿1,094

$26.88 R$145

20.57%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.81 ฿297

$8.24 R$44.37

6.92%

Cappuccino

$2.83 ฿95.4

$2.15 R$11.58

31.63%

Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.87 ฿29.42

$1.10 R$5.91

-20.91%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.49 ฿16.66

$0.86 R$4.65

-43.02%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.56 ฿86.3

$2.25 R$12.11

13.78%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.68 ฿124

$2.94 R$15.81

25.17%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.66 ฿56.0

$1.00 R$5.38

66.00%

White Bread (500g)

$1.46 ฿49.32

$1.50 R$8.07

-2.67%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.50 ฿50.5

$1.23 R$6.60

21.95%

Eggs

$2.09 ฿70.5

$1.83 R$9.84

14.21%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$19.07 ฿643

$5.62 R$30.24

239.32%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.30 ฿111

$2.96 R$15.92

11.49%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.91 ฿368

$7.28 R$39.20

49.86%

Apples (1kg)

$2.93 ฿98.9

$1.94 R$10.43

51.03%

Banana (1kg)

$1.69 ฿57.0

$1.58 R$8.50

6.96%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.25 ฿75.8

$1.39 R$7.48

61.87%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.08 ฿70.1

$1.26 R$6.78

65.08%

Potato (1kg)

$1.51 ฿51.0

$1.24 R$6.65

21.77%

Onion (1kg)

$1.38 ฿46.54

$0.77 R$4.14

79.22%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.07 ฿35.97

$0.67 R$3.60

59.70%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.52 ฿17.51

$0.77 R$4.16

-32.47%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.20 ฿142

$2.00 R$10.78

110.00%

Wine (Bottle)

$18.79 ฿634

$6.33 R$34.08

196.84%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.82 ฿61.5

$1.46 R$7.84

24.66%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.84 ฿95.9

$2.36 R$12.70

20.34%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.45 ฿49.00

$0.96 R$5.16

51.04%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$56.7 ฿1,912

$21.53 R$116

163.17%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.02 ฿102

$1.08 R$5.84

179.63%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.02 ฿34.34

$0.66 R$3.56

54.55%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.69 ฿125

$3.30 R$17.77

11.82%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.47 ฿49.78

$1.21 R$6.52

21.49%

Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)

$26.8K ฿903.7K

$14.3K R$77.0K

87.27%

Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)

$26.7K ฿900.8K

$27.6K R$148.7K

-3.41%

Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)

$96.4 ฿3,252

$62.2 R$335

54.93%

SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)

$11.26 ฿380

$12.19 R$65.6

-7.63%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$16.85 ฿569

$21.17 R$114

-20.41%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$67.2 ฿2,269

$20.15 R$108

233.65%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.73 ฿362

$15.02 R$80.9

-28.56%

Cinema Ticket

$7.50 ฿253

$7.41 R$39.89

1.21%

Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)

$476 ฿16.1K

$207 R$1,111

130.47%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.3K ฿380.1K

$3,944 R$21.2K

185.57%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$62.4 ฿2,105

$53.3 R$287

16.91%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$28.41 ฿959

$52.1 R$280

-45.46%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$94.3 ฿3,182

$72.4 R$390

30.25%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$85.8 ฿2,896

$55.4 R$298

54.93%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$716 ฿24.2K

$396 R$2,132

80.71%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$491 ฿16.6K

$218 R$1,175

124.92%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,927 ฿65.0K

$790 R$4,254

143.76%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,431 ฿48.3K

$484 R$2,606

195.41%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,175 ฿140.9K

$1,610 R$8,666

159.29%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,045 ฿102.8K

$1,166 R$6,277

161.05%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$502 ฿17.0K

$308 R$1,658

63.05%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

8.15

-31.66%

CityCost data is based on AI and user input – minor inaccuracies may occur.

Last update for Phuket: October 26, 2026

Last update for Caraguatatuba: October 24, 2026

Monthly budget structure

Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.

Accommodation & Living

Phuket

$491 38.4%

Caraguatatuba

$218 28.1% 55.5% $273

Groceries & Markets

Phuket

$266 20.8%

Caraguatatuba

$164 21% 38.5% $103

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Phuket

$124 9.7%

Caraguatatuba

$96 12.3% 23.2% $29

Clothing & Footwear

Phuket

$122 9.5%

Caraguatatuba

$105 13.5% 13.9% $17

Eating Out

Phuket

$122 9.5%

Caraguatatuba

$131 16.8% 7.7% $9.4

Sport & Entertainment

Phuket

$82 6.4%

Caraguatatuba

$35 4.5% 57.5% $47

Getting Around

Phuket

$71 5.5%

Caraguatatuba

$30 3.8% 57.8% $41

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $716 in Phuket and $396 in Caraguatatuba. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Phuket pays 63% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $32 in Phuket vs $27 in Caraguatatuba for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $266 vs $164 per month, with Caraguatatuba cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Phuket

🇧🇷 Caraguatatuba

🕒 Local time

16:50 4:50 PM

06:50 6:50 AM

10 h behind Phuket

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

79,308

134,873

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

Brazilian Real BRL R$

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.96 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

1 BRL = 0.186 USD

1 BRL = 0.167 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

BRL, USD, EUR to THB – Thai Baht Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇹🇭 Thai Baht (฿)

Thai Baht exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 33.75 THB (100 THB = 2.96 USD). 1 EUR = 37.66 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

Brazilian Real exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 5.38 BRL (1 BRL = 0.186 USD). 1 EUR = 6.01 BRL (1 BRL = 0.167 EUR).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Phuket Caraguatatuba 15,780 km ≈ 20 h nonstop flight

From you

Phuket
Caraguatatuba

Distances are measured in a straight line. Your location is detected approximately.

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated April 2026)

The chart highlights the Precision Threshold for mobile and fixed broadband internet speeds, updated quarterly.

Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

Phuket vs Caraguatatuba: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Caraguatatuba is about 39% cheaper overall, especially in groceries, leisure, and transport. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay runs 63% higher in Phuket, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $716 in Phuket versus $396 in Caraguatatuba. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 63% higher in Phuket. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

Dining out is cheaper in Caraguatatuba – a meal for two runs $27 versus $32 in Phuket. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $778 in Caraguatatuba versus $1,278 in Phuket, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Caraguatatuba but tight or insufficient in Phuket. The gap between the two cities makes Caraguatatuba the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both cities offer a good standard of living with different trade-offs. Neither is objectively better – the right pick depends on what matters most: affordability, career, cultural scene, or climate.

Expats usually find Caraguatatuba gentler on the wallet – expenses run 39% less than in Phuket. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.